The Breeders Cup Sprint is a prestigious American Group One horse race which forms part of the annual Breeders Cup meeting.

Run over a distance of six furlongs on dirt, it is one of the most high status races of its kind and carries a hefty $2 million prize purse.

Horses aged three years-old and above are permitted to enter, with a ‘weight for age’ handicap allotted to the field which is usually capped at fourteen runners. Eillo triumphed in the race’s inaugural running in 1984 for jockey Craig Perret and trainer Budd Lepman, recording a time of 1:10 which happens to be the slowest ever in the history of the race.

Midnight Lute is arguably recognised as the best horse to have graced the championship race after back to back wins in 2007 and 2008, giving famous trainer Bob Baffert his second and third successes in the race fifteen years on from when Thirteen Slews romped home in 1992.

In 2007, the race was incorporated into the Breeders Cup Challenge, a process which consists of a series of races throughout the campaign whereby horses can earn automatic qualifying berths for the Breeders Cup Sprint at the end of October or beginning of November.

The Breeders Cup Sprint qualifying races are the Ancient Title Stakes at Santa Anita, the Phoenix Stakes at Keenland, the Smile Sprint Handicap at Calder and Del Mar Racecourse’s Pat O’ Brien Handicap.

Horses that perform well in, or even win those races, are likely to have a leading chance in the Breeders Cup Sprint.

As the aforementioned qualifying races are exclusive to American horses, the Breeders Cup Sprint itself is consequently no different, meaning that a great deal of time and research needs investing into the race prior to placing a bet if you are not ultra-familiar with the sport’s action across the Atlantic.

The Ancient Title Stakes at Santa Anita is also a Group One race so the form of this particular contest is perhaps the most important to focus on when trying to find a potential Breeders Cup Sprint champion.

The one thing punters must do is study winning times and horses who can potentially cover the six furlong distance in around 1:08 as that has tended to be the required effort in recent years.

Four year-olds have won half of all renewals to date which is certainly something to take on board; however as with all races it must be treated as a trend and not a definitive factor.

This perhaps though is where the ‘weight for age’ aspect comes into play. Younger horses obviously receive a weight allowance against their older rivals, however they may still be ‘worse off’ in terms of a handicap as it is debatable how effective weight is as an actual handicap over such a short race distance.

A 6lb burden is unlikely to be enough of a detriment to a powerful four year-old sprinter who holds far more positives over a lesser experienced, less strong three year-old.

Experience in horses is key in racing and especially important in sprints as animals need to be on the job from the very moment the gates open and this is emphasised even further by the strength of the competition in the Breeders Cup.

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